Anti-Pipeline protest in downtown Kelowna

Following last week's announcement that the federal government would be buying the Kinder Morgan Pipeline for $4.5 billion, anti-pipeline protests popped up around Canada on Monday, with 40 taking place in BC.

One such protest happened in downtown Kelowna, where dozens gathered outside Kelowna-Lake Country MP Stephen Fuhr's office on St. Paul Street.

"I'd rather be on the right side of history and say no rather than sit quietly and allow it to go through without our voices heard," says one protester.

Despite the large number of anti-pipeline protesters, there were some present at the rally who didn't share those views.

"While we need energy, why not get it from our own country?" Asked one man in favour of the pipeline expansion.

Korry Zepick, who organized Monday's rally, hopes that these protests will convince Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to reconsider his offer.

"(The pipeline) is uneconomical and it's a money-loser," says Zepick. "And the best thing that Kinder Morgan could have done was to sell it to our government for four times the market value.

Zepick had gathered 100,000 signatures on a petition that he hoped to deliver to Fuhr on Monday, but the Liberal MP was not in his office during Monday's protest.